


Building the Boat

by Julesmonster



Category: NCIS
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Sailing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-15
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2019-08-02 18:44:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,539
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16310642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Julesmonster/pseuds/Julesmonster
Summary: Gibbs has run off to Mexico and Tony finds a way to be close to him from far away.





	Building the Boat

**Author's Note:**

> So, I usually don’t post such short works, unless they are part of a larger compendium, like my new Random & Short Tropes. But... this story has been on my iPad for years just waiting for me to do something more with it. Then I realized that there wasn’t anything more it needed. I was tempted to add it to R&ST just because... but it wasn’t Random at all. So here is a sweet little piece. I hope you enjoy.

Gibbs had been gone for only five days the first time Tony went to the basement of Gibbs' house. He wasn't sure if he was looking for comfort or clarity or possibly sanctuary from the mess Gibbs had left in his wake. More likely, he was simply looking for some way to stay connected to the man who had always been his anchor since that very first case in Baltimore. Gibbs was his touchstone and Tony felt adrift without him.

That first visit, Tony hadn't touched anything. He had treated the basement and the half finished boat that resided there like a shrine. On his second visit, less than a week later, Tony had gotten stinking drunk off the bourbon Gibbs kept on the shelf down there and fell asleep under the boat, just like Gibbs used to do. 

The third visit was on a weekend about a month after Gibbs had scuttled off to Mexico. Tony spent all day Saturday and Sunday cleaning the house and airing it out. It was spring and Tony gave the house a good spring cleaning. 

After that, the visits became more frequent until, about three months after Gibbs left, Tony spent more time at the house than he did at his own apartment. That was about the time a plan started to form in the back of Tony's mind. It wasn't something he openly examined or even admitted to himself, but it was there. If Gibbs wouldn't come home, then Tony would go after Gibbs.

But hopping on a plane was too easy. Gibbs would simply shut him down and put him right back on another plane heading back to DC. No, Tony had to do something that Gibbs couldn't counter. He had to go all out. He had to make the grand gesture, something that would force Gibbs to see what neither of them had willingly acknowledged in the five years they had worked together. And Tony knew just how to do it.

Tony's plans got sidetracked for a short time when Ziva came under fire. He knew she didn't trust him to help her out, but she had little choice in the matter when she couldn't guilt Gibbs into coming back. In fact, Mike Franks had told Tony during their weekly phone call that Gibbs had packed up and headed further south when he heard she was calling. Mike was convinced he would be back eventually, so Tony continued with his plan.

They managed to get Ziva out of trouble, but rather than being grateful for their help, she decided to go home to Israel. Tony figured that she finally got the message that Gibbs was gone for good and didn't think the rest of them were worth sticking around for. Hell, they all got the message that Gibbs wasn't coming back. Abby's shrine to Gibbs came down. Tim stopped pointing out how Tony wasn't Gibbs and started trying to find his place in the new team. Ducky sighed more often and told fewer stories. Tony, for his part, went to the director and asked for two new agents to fill in the empty spots on the team.

In the meantime, Tony went to work on his new project. Every night, he spent hours doing what he had seen Gibbs do for years. He took classes to learn techniques to work with wood. He read books on the subject. He spent almost all of his down time in Gibbs' basement working on that half finished boat. He was determined that he would finish it. And when Gibbs’ house finally went on the market, Tony bought it and sold his old apartment so he could keep working on the boat.

It took nearly two years to complete the job. It took another three weeks to figure out how Gibbs planned to get the damned thing out of the basement. And then it took another three months to make it seaworthy. By the time the boat was ready to sail, Gibbs had been gone for three years.

In that time, Tony had faced all kinds of crazy situations at work. Jenny Shepherd had tried to rope him into a dangerous and ill-advised undercover op. She had later been killed in a senseless gun battle out in California over an op that had gone wrong more than a decade earlier. The new director wasn't impressed with Tony, but they had come to a mutually satisfying truce so that they could work together. Tim had been promoted to Senior Field Agent after he and Tony had worked together to expose a mole. 

But when the boat was complete, Tony handed in his resignation. He had no regrets about it. He would miss Abby and Ducky and Tim and Jimmy, but they were all ready to move on. Abby had finally accepted one of the numerous job offers she got every year. Ducky was retiring. Jimmy was taking over for Ducky. And Tim was ready to lead his own team. None of them needed Tony any more. Vance wasn't happy, but Tony figured that was pretty much his normal state of being. And Tony had his own happiness to consider.

It didn't take long to get his affairs in order. Tony had been planning for the day for three years. He had gotten rid of most of his personal possessions when he sold his condo. It made moving easier and since all of his time was spent building the boat, there was little need for most of the clutter he had once considered essential. His finances were a little trickier, but they too had been reconciled long before the day he set sail.

The one thing Tony wasn't sure about was Gibbs' reaction. His weekly calls to Mike Franks had petered from once a week to once a month, but they still kept in contact. But Mike couldn't really predict how Gibbs would react any more than Tony could. And the fact of the matter was that Mike didn't see Gibbs nearly as often lately. He had found his own stretch of land on the south side of town from where Mike lived and they only met up at the cantina a couple times a month. And since Ziva had called, no one else had even attempted to call or see Gibbs that Tony knew about.

Tony served his final month of notice and then said goodbye to his friends. He spent a couple days getting supplies for the trip and closing up the house. He paid in advance to have someone come in and clean once a month and to make sure the place was still standing. And then he set out.

GDGDGDGDGD

Tony had learned to sail as a child. Sailing was part of the lifestyle that Anthony DiNozzo Senior had so desperately attempted to emulate, just like the formal dance lessons and piano lessons and tennis lessons and lessons in etiquette. Sailing, however, was one activity that Tony had actually enjoyed. Going out on a boat on the Long Island Sound, with nothing but water for as far as the eye could see, was as much an escape for him as movies and television had been. 

Setting sail for Mexico, therefore, was like riding a bike. Even after so many years, it didn't take long to recall how to read the wind and the waves. It didn't take long to remember which sail to fly in certain weather. He might not remember all the technical terms, but the actions were almost second nature to him.

He stuck close to the shoreline for the first week, until he felt more comfortable in his skill and confident in his craft. After that, he began venturing further from shore. He would stop into port every few days to restock supplies; his cooler only kept cold for about five days, so anything perishable had to be used in that time frame. He had a large stock of canned goods, but was intent on keeping those for emergencies or long stretches of water where getting to port was impossible.

Tony didn't feel a need to rush. He took his time getting where he needed to go. Mike had told him that they were living near a town on the Pacific Ocean, along the Yucatan Peninsula, so it was a long trip down through the Caribbean, through the Panama Canal, and then north again. He stopped at a lot of small islands and costal towns along the way. He spent a couple nights in a hotel in Jamaica and a week in Costa Rica when he couldn't stand his own company another day.

His days on the boat were spent in quiet contemplation. He thought about who he was, where he had come from and where he was going in the metaphysical sense. He replayed the years he spent working with Gibbs and the years since he had left. He considered what he would do if Gibbs wasn't as welcoming as Tony hoped he might be. 

GDGDGDGDGD

It took almost two months from start to finish, but eventually Tony found the sheltered inlet where Gibbs had built his cabin. He set anchor about two hundred yards from shore just as the sun was setting. He wasn't surprised to note that Gibbs came out to watch the sunset and spotted him almost immediately. With a deep breath, Tony dove into the warm blue water and began to swim for shore.

Gibbs was waiting for him when he reach the beach, a bottle of beer in each hand. "Long way to come for Mexican beer."

Tony grinned at him, relieved that Gibbs hadn't cussed him out straight away. "Wasn't the beer that was the draw."

Gibbs nodded and turned back toward the small shack that was Gibbs' home these days. "Well, you coming?"

"On your six, Boss," Tony said automatically.

Gibbs paused mid stride but didn't turn around. "Not your boss, Tony."

"Alright," Tony acknowledged. "Jethro."

They reached the deck that ran the length of the beachside cabin and Gibbs gestured for Tony to take a seat in one of the two hand-made Adirondack chairs while he took the other. In silence, they drank their beers and watched as the last rays of sunlight faded from the sky.

"That my boat?" Gibbs finally asked once the sky had changed from reds and golds to the deep indigo of early evening.

"Our boat," Tony corrected. "But yeah. I finished her. Christened her Caitlin."

"Mmm," Gibbs hummed. "Good choice."

"Gonna ask why I'm here?" Tony asked in a tone that was a lot more casual than he was feeling.

"Always figured if anyone came looking it would be you," Gibbs said.

Tony gave a self-deprecating laugh at that. "Only one as stubborn as you."

"True."

"I've been planning this for a long time," Tony said. "Almost from the day you left."

"You plan on trying to talk me into coming back?" Gibbs asked.

"Nope," Tony said. "I don't even plan on going back. At least not more than for a short visit."

Gibbs seemed to mull that over. "What about the team?"

Tony snorted. "What team? A lot has changed since you left."

"Like?" Gibbs prompted.

Tony considered his words. "Abby and McGee got married. She took a job with one of those research groups that were always recruiting her. Tim is leading his own team now. Not MCRT, but I think he's happy enough. Ducky retired when his mother got sick. She died a few months ago and now he's doing a bit of traveling. Jimmy took over for him and is pretty serious with a girl. I expect they'll get married before too long."

"And Ziva?" Gibbs asked.

"She went back to Israel," Tony said. "About six months after you left. There was an incident. We settled it, but I think it left her wanting to go home."

"I heard about Jenny," Gibbs said.

Tony nodded. Gibbs would have. Mike was wrapped up in that debacle and only some fast talking by Tony had gotten him out of it. Vance had wanted to put the man away, but Tony had convinced him that it was better to keep the entire affair under wraps.

"Thanks for what you did for Mike," Gibbs continued. "I know he probably never thought to say it, but I know he appreciated your help."

"Yeah, well, he and I have come to appreciate each other," Tony said.

"What about you?" Gibbs asked.

Tony smiled a little ruefully. "I took over MCRT. We solved cases, caught bad guys. I got Tim ready to lead his own team. And then I resigned."

"So this isn't just a vacation," Gibbs said.

"Spent two months on a boat to get here," Tony said. "Didn't plan on just turning around and heading back, Jethro."

"So what did you plan?" Gibbs asked.

Tony shrugged. "Depends on you. You want me to stay, I stay. You want me to go, I'll probably head towards Hawaii. You want to come with me, we go together. Up to you."

"Always wanted to sail around the world," Gibbs said quietly.

"We can do that," Tony said.

"Money?" Gibbs asked. "Because I don't have any. I get by on what's left of my pension after the alimony. That and I do some odd jobs and sell a few pieces of furniture."

Tony grinned. "I've got money. More than we'll need."

Gibbs narrowed his eyes at Tony. "How?"

"Just because my father disowned me doesn't mean my mother's family did," Tony said. "Got my inheritance from my grandmother when I turned forty. Believe me when I say it's more than enough."

"And you didn't run right out and buy the red Ferrari you've always wanted?" Gibbs asked with a small laugh.

"I thought about it," Tony admitted with a smile. "But I decided that it would be a waste since I was planning on leaving. The money is being handled by one of my frat brothers who went into investment banking. I get a monthly allowance that will be more than enough to pay for anything we might want or need."

"Does this make me your kept boy?" Gibbs teased, but there was a sincere question there.

"It makes us partners," Tony said soberly. "How you want to define that term is again up to you."

Gibbs reached his hand out across the space between their two chairs and clasped Tony's hand in his own. When Tony didn't pull away, he shifted their hands so that their fingers were intertwined. "Missed you, Tony."

"Me too, Jethro," Tony said.

GDGDGDGDGD

It took nearly a week to agree on a route and stock up the boat to Gibbs' satisfaction. They spent a couple of evenings with Mike Franks either at his place or at the cantina. The older man gave Gibbs a rough time about sailing off with Tony, but it was all in good fun. He didn't come right out and ask them if they were sleeping together, but he assumed. And he assumed correctly.

Then, one morning before sunrise, they left with the tide and set out to see the world together. And that’s just what they did.

**Author's Note:**

> For those interested: yes, I did have a route for their trip planned out. It was based on the information I found at this website: http://worldsailing.guru/articles/ChoosingYourRoute.aspx. It was interesting researching the possible ways to make the trip, but in the end, I thought the story was good without the actual trip. Hope you agree. 
> 
> Also, I am working on another chapter of R&ST. THis one features Daniel Jackson and Tony Stark in a bonding trope. I should have it finished this week, if things settle down at work.


End file.
